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November 29, 2016

Former basketball standout reinvents himself through new sound fusion of reggae, calypso and hip-hop

ORLANDO, FL – For most of his life, Armani Amin Muhammad – AKA Mani – was focused on basketball. As a promising starter for his basketball team in the Virgin Islands, Mani had aspirations of making it big as a professional athlete.

But when he moved to Atlanta midway through his high school years, a series of challenges led to him not making the team and he found himself facing an uncertain future. It was in the middle of that uncertainty that he found his voice as a musician. Turning his commitment for basketball toward a career in music, he soon discovered that he had a natural talent that growing numbers of fans have clamored for in the years since.

Today Mani is set to release his latest single, simply titled “Intro.” It’s a name that speaks for itself, and it’s a song that will not only introduce him to the world but introduce his unique blend of reggae, calypso and hip-hop to a world eagerly looking for that next new star.

“It’s kind of a song about the everyday struggles of anybody who is trying to make something of themselves,” he said of the single. “Raggae and Calypso comes second nature to me because I was raised on that in the Virgin Islands. But I can make music in every genre, and I’ll go by whatever I’m inspired by. I want my music to speak for itself, and let the people who listen to it interpret however they need to for themselves. If they see the hard work I put into the music and they’re inspired by that, then my music has done its job.”

Not only does the single introduce Mani as an artist to the world, but it also serves as an intro to a new mixtape he’ll be releasing in the first quarter of 2017. The name of the mixtape is “L.I.F.E. Pt. 2,” and it’ll feature a variety of songs he’s written over the past few years. He said it’s a project that will help fans get a feel for his range as a musician and his ability to weave meaningful lyrics into catchy instrumentals that will leave listeners eager to his replay.

“L.I.F.E. stands for Living In Fear Extinguished,” Mani said. “I’m not living in fear. I don’t fear anything. When you’re living an enlightened life, you don’t have to live in fear. That’s the way I feel about it. And I want to be able to reach people all across the world with my music and inspire them in the same way.”

Fans who want to sample Mani’s new single can do so by visiting his website, 1mani.com, or by visiting his YouTube page at ManiTV. Fans can also follow him on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook under the handle @1officialmani, or on Snapchat @officialmani.